Kale crisps
Kale crisps have become a rather fashionable snack in the past few years, and that’s hardly surprising, given how easy they are to make and how delicious they are to eat. Making your own is a good way to use an excess of kale in the garden, even slightly-past-their-best leaves. They make a great nibble to go with drinks, or you can use them as you would crispy seaweed in salads, or sprinkled on soups.
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Fan 160°C/Gas 4.
Wash the kale and dry well: it will crisp up better if it is very dry. Tear the leaves into bite-sized pieces and place on a baking tray (or two if you’re making a lot – you don’t want to crowd the tray/s).
Trickle over the oil and massage it thoroughly into every nook and cranny of the leaves. Don’t salt them yet – they roast better just with the oil. Spread the leaves out on the tray/s in an even, single layer.
Bake for 10 minutes, then take the tray from the oven and give the leaves a good stir. Return to the oven and bake for a further 5–10 minutes.
The leaves should be crisp but don’t let them get too dark or they will be bitter.
Sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve.
Serving suggestions
Dust with a little paprika or some finely grated lemon zest along with the salt.
Umami hit
After massaging in the oil, shake a few splashes of tamari or soy sauce over the leaves; you won’t need much as the flavour
intensifies as the leaves bake.
Ingredients
- Few handfuls of kale, thickest, woody stems removed
- 2–3 tablespoons rapeseed or olive oil
- Flaky sea salt
This recipe is taken from...
If you like this recipe, you might like the following course...
Veg Cookery
Who needs meat? During the River Cottage Veg cookery course you'll learn to turn local, seasonal produce into delicious veggie dishes.
Full details